Modular display table



MODULAR DISPLAY TABLE Sheet 7 of 2 Filed Aug. 7. 1967 INVENTOR SYDNEY W. JENTZEN 5 3 BY M AW, v 0M2 ATTORNEYS Dec. 31, 1968 5, w, JENTZEN 3,419,319

MODULAR DISPLAY TABLE Filed Aug. 7, 1967 Sheet 2 of 2 i a; r

' FIGIO INVENTOR SYDNEY W- JENTZEN ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,419,319 MODULAR DISPLAY TABLE Sydney W. Jentzen, Bloomfield Hills, Mich., assignor to Jentzen-Miller Company, Madison Heights, Mich.

Filed Aug. 7, 1967, Ser. No. 658,892 7 Claims. (Cl. 312-257) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The present invention relates to a modular display table construction.

The present invention is directed to a modular display table which includes frames and panels and employing diagonal slots and straight slots adapted for interlocking registry with headed fasteners on said frames and top and bottom decks with end flanges including angular and straight slots adapted for interlocking assembly with corresponding headed fasteners on the end panels to complete a table construction without the use of any separate fastening means.

It is another object to provide a novel deck construction which is suitably apertured and adapted to receive there onto a series of wire fences and dividers to provide a series of display compartments.

It is a further object to provide a superstructure center frame assembly and end frame therefore with suitable rows of apertures therein adapted to receive conventional bracketing for the removable mounting of shelves as desired in a cooperative structural assembly with the said panels, frames and decks.

These and other objects will be seen from the following specification and claims in conjunction with the appended drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective partly exploded view of the present modular display table.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of such table partly assembled.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary elevational section taken in the direction of arrows 33 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view thereof showing the assembly of the frames and end panels.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary section taken in the direction of arrows 5-5 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary section taken in the direction of arrows 66 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the superstructure center frame.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a top deck.

FIG. 9 is a.- fragmentary section taken in the direction of arrows 99 of FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary bottom plan view of a top or bottom deck, apertures omitted.

FIG. 11 is an end elevational view of an alternate frame construction.

It will be understood that the above drawings illustrate merely a preferred embodiment of the invention, and that other embodiments are contemplated within the scope of the claims hereafter set forth.

Referring to the drawings the present modular display table includes a pair of upright parallel spaced rectangular front and rear frames 11 and 12 including depending legs 13 at their ends. A pair of vertically spaced headed fasteners 28, FIG. 5, are secured to each of the end portions of said frames with their heads spaced outwardly thereof.

Upright end panels 14 are arranged between and span the front and rear frames 11 and 12, and include upright end flanges 29, FIG. 5, with a top diagonal slot 30 and a bottom straight slot 31, which are respectively interlocked with the frame fasteners 28 in the manner shown in FIGURE 5. In this construction the respective angular slots 30 at the ends of the end panels are first assembled over the top fasteners 28 after which the end panels are swung downwardly in a counterclockwise direction, as shown in the dotted lines, until the lower slots 31 interlock with lower fasteners 28.

As shown in FIGURES 1 and 6, the front frame 11 includes the opposed double upper and lower tracks 15 within which independently slide the closures 16 for selectively opening and closing the interior of said display table, FIGURE 1.

FIGURES 2 and 3 show the assembly of the top and bottom decks upon and within and between said frames and panels.

While one bottom deck 17 could be employed, in the illustrative embodiment there are provided a pair of said bottom decks 17 of a construction such as shown in FIGURES 8 and 9, but with the top wall apertures omitted. The lower decks 17 as well as the upper decks 18 include depending end flanges 34 which include spaced diagonal slot 30 and straight slot 31 adapted for interlocking registry with respect to corresponding headed fasteners 33, which project outwardly from the bottom upright flanges 32 and corresponding aligned top flanges 32 of the respective end panels 14.

A superstructure center frame 19 of FIGURE 7 is shown assembled in FIGURE 1, and includes a pair of inwardly displaced depending legs 20 of square crosssection to thus define the support shoulders 21 adapted for cooperative registry with the top edges of the respective end panels at the same time as the elongated legs 20 are snugly nested within the respective slots 22 between the respective top decks and between the respective bot tom decks and requiring no further fastening.

The respective top decks 18 are compartmented using a plurality of wire fences 23 and dividers 24 as hereafter described.

Hollow rectangular end frame 25 in an upright position is applied to one end of the superstructure center frame 19 secured thereto by a pair of fasteners 26, being the only assembly which requires the application of a screwdriver and a pair of fasteners.

There are shown within the superstructure frame as well as the end frame 25 within the respective uprights thereof, a series of longitudinally spaced opposed groups of elongated slots 27. These are adapted to receive the conventional types of bracketing, not shown, between which shelves may be mounted in a conventional manner, and thus the detail and construction is not included herein.

Each of the end panels 14 include upon their interior the upright opposed flanges 32, which are arranged in alignment and projecting inwardly thereof are a series of spaced headed fasteners 33 to cooperatively register with the corresponding angular and straight slots 30 and 31 of the bottom decks 17 in the manner shown in FIGURES 2 and 3. The bottom decks as assembled define the elongated slot 22, which cooperatively receives and retains bottom portions of the superstructure frame legs 20.

By similar arrangement the respective top decks 18 have corresponding flanges 34 with straight and angular slots 31 and 30, adapted for cooperative interlocking registry within the corresponding headed fasteners 33, which project inwardly from the top flange 32 of the said end panels. Here also the top decks are similarly spaced apart by the slot 22, such as shown in FIGURES 2 and 3.

Top and bottom deck construction The top and bottom decks 18 and 17 respectively are the same in construction except that the bottom decks omit the series of apertures 39 and 41 required in the top decks for the assembly of the fences and dividers, FIGURE 1.

Each of the decks include the elongated side flanges 35, which terminate at their lower ends and the upwardly opening channels 36, the latter terminating in the outwardly directed flanges 37, having a row of longitudinally spaced apertures 38 therethrough.

The top surface of the top deck 18 adjacent the side flanges 35 has a plurality of apertures 39 therethrough in registry with the channel 36, adapted to receive the end shafts 40 of the wire fences 23, the lower ends of said shafts nesting down into the channels 36.

There are also provided a series of longitudinally spaced inner apertures 41 which extend throughout the length of the top deck adapted to receive the end projecting shafts 42 of the wire dividers 24 to thus provide a series of compartments upon the top decks of the display table.

Referring to FIGURE 10, there is shown the undersurface of one of the decks, as for example the deck 17, which for certain sizes is provided with reinforcement tubes, one or more, designated at 43, into whose ends are snugly inserted the coined projections 44 forming a portion of the end flanges 3-2 and wherein the said tube 43 cooperatively and supportably registers with the undersurface of said deck.

Under some conditions instead of the wire fences employed in FIGURE 1, there may be employed the solid type of fence, such as shown at 48, in FIGURE 11. In this construction the respective front and rear frames 11' will include at their ends the upright posts 45 which are preferably square in cross-section, and which include on the interior sides the opposed pairs of vertically spaced headed fasteners 46, whose heads project outwardly of the said posts. These are adapted for cooperative registry within the elongated end slots 49 in fences 48. By a similar construction like fences may be provided to interconnect posts 45 corresponding to the respective end panels, and wherein additional sets of vertically spaced apertures 46 arranged at 90 degrees to the first fasteners. Additional central fastener 47 on frame 11' intermediate posts 45 is received in bottom slot 50 of said fence.

Having described my invention reference should now be had to the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a modular display table, upright parallel spaced rectangular front and rear frames with depending legs at their ends;

a pair of vertically spaced headed fasteners secured to each of the end portions of each frame with their heads spaced inwardly thereof;

upright end panels between and spanning said frames;

said end panels having upright end flanges, each with a top diagonal slot and a bottom straight slot interconnected with said frame fasteners respectively;

said end panels including top and bottom upright inwardly directed aligned flanges;

at least one pair of horizontally spaced headed fasteners secured-to each of said aligned flanges of each end panel With their heads spaced inwardly thereof;

vertically spaced top and bottom decks between and respectively spanning said end panels;

said decks having depending end flanges, each end flange having a downwardly opening slot and spaced therefrom a diagonal slot adapted for respective interlock with said end panel fasteners.

2. In the modular display table of claim 1, said top deck having depending side flanges terminating in upwardly opening channels on the underside thereof;

a series of longitudinally spaced apertures in said top deck adjacent said side flanges in registry with said channels respectively;

an upright wire fence along the sides of said top deck, including depending end support shafts extending through an adjacent pair of said latter apertures and nested down into said channels respectively;

there being a series of longitudinally spaced transverse pairs of additional apertures in said deck inwardly of said first apertures;

and a series of upright wire dividers extending transversely of said fences, including depending end support shafts extending through some of said pairs of additional apertures defining a plurality of display compartments.

3. In the modular display table of claim 1, said front and rear frames having a pair of posts extending thereabove at their ends;

right angularly related pairs of aligned vertically spaced headed fasteners secured to each post in opposing coplanar registry;

with their heads spaced inwardly of said posts;

and upright fences interposed between said posts, providing a rectangular enclosure above said deck;

the ends of each fense having an outwardly opening vertical slot interlockingly receiving pairs of said fasteners.

4. In the modular display table of claim 1, there being an additional pair of horizontally spaced headed fasteners secured to each of said end panel aligned flanges;

and an additional top and bottom deck between and spanning said end panels, with said respective decks in horizontal registry.

5. In the modular display table of claim 1, said front and rear frames being hollow;

a rear panel nested and secured within and closing said rear frame;

opposed top and bottom tracks secured within the top and bottom of said front frame respectively;

and a pair of parallel sliding doors in said tracks for opening and closing said front frame.

'6. In the modular display table of claim 4, said top decks and said bottom decks being spaced apart defining a pair of vertically spaced slots;

and a hollow upright superstructure center frame coplanar with said slots, and including a pair of depending end legs spaced inwardly of the ends of said center frame defining end ledges register-able with said end panels;

said legs snugly extending down through said slots adjacent their opposite ends and bearing against the inner surfaces of said end panels.

7. In the modular display table of claim 1, at least one reinforcement tube of square cross-section bearing against the undersurface of each of said decks, with its opposite ends engaging said deck end flanges;

portions of said end flanges being coined inwardly in cooperative engaging and retaining registry with said tube ends.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,980,482 4/1961 Baio 312257 3,169,810 2/1965 Levy et al. 312-1401 3,346,311 10/1967 Bears 3l2257 JAMES T. MCCALL, Primary Examiner.

J. L. KOHNEN, Assistant Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 

